Tag: pride month

Categories
Community Lite Blogs

Embraces diversity

Do we need more LGBTQIA+ friendly hubs in India?(ianslife)

Brands need to prioritise LGBTQIA+ inclusion in their internal policies and practices, it starts from there. This involves promoting diversity within their workforce and adopting anti-discrimination policies that protect employees and customers…writes Pearl Daruwalla

Despite the decriminalisation of homosexuality in 2018, there remains a significant dearth of safe social places where Indians, especially minorities, feel comfortable in their own skin. This lack of inclusive spaces perpetuates feelings of insecurity and marginalisation, hindering the overall well-being and progress of our society.

Real-life experiences often reveal the challenges faced by LGBTQIA+ individuals in India. Many have encountered discrimination, harassment, and even violence in public spaces. Simple activities like holding hands or expressing affection can be met with hostility, causing individuals to retreat into the shadows, and suppressing their true identities. The absence of safe spaces exacerbates this vulnerability, leaving individuals without a supportive environment where they can freely express themselves.

In India, the need for more LGBTQIA+ – friendly hubs is paramount to creating a society that embraces diversity and fosters inclusivity. To bridge this gap, brands and businesses have a crucial role to play. By embracing the diversity and inclusivity principles, places like Social want to help provide safe and inclusive spaces for individuals across the LGBTQIA+ spectrum and recognise the need and influence of the LGBTQIA+ community and are actively work towards creating welcoming environments.

Brands need to prioritise LGBTQIA+ inclusion in their internal policies and practices, it starts from there. This involves promoting diversity within their workforce and adopting anti-discrimination policies that protect employees and customers.

Moreover, brands can collaborate with LGBTQIA+ organisations and activists to co-create safe social spaces. We collaborate with grassroots organisations to facilitate workshops and events that push the envelope in breaking the taboos, whether that’s through Satrangi Mela (an LGBTQIA+ national fair that happens across India and throughout the year featuring popups and acts by individuals from the community) and by ensuring equitable representation at other forums that we have, such as Culture Chutney and Super Deluxe.

By actively and consistently engaging with the community, our goal is to understand their unique needs and preferences, ensuring that these spaces are truly inclusive and responsive to their requirements. This collaboration extends and will continue to create an impact through events, workshops, and discussions that promote awareness and education about LGBTQIA+ issues.

ALSO READ-Celebrate Pride Month’s universal language of love

READ MORE-AIKYA, a fusion of western silhouettes with Indian touch

Categories
Community Films Lite Blogs

Movies to celebrate ‘pride month’

This critically acclaimed coming-of-age drama revolves around coming to terms with queerness in African-American cultures. The movie won three Oscars including Best Picture in 2017…writes Lothungbeni Humtsoe

Cinema becomes an important reflection of what life is, often a celebration. It sometimes also mirrors the nuances of the struggles people go through, struggles which are incomprehensible in real life.

“In order to be an ally, you need to acknowledge the struggles, celebrations, and lives of queer individuals. Queer movies become a source of understanding the queer experience which in return gives you an insight into how similar yet different our lives are. It not only expand your understanding of queer lives but also sensitize you to the struggle and oppression that the community went through at the hands of patriarchy and heteronormativity”, says Yashwant Panwar, Communications lead Imbue Natural.

This Pride Month, here’s a look at the movies that have helped us understand and witness what it means to be queer in different parts of the world.

Fire

Loosely based on Ismat Chugtai’s sensational short story Lihaaf, Fire is one of the first Indian movies that explicitly depicted the struggle of queer women in an overtly homophobic and patriarchal society.

Memories in March

This masterpiece by Rituparono Ghosh not only gives us a perspective on coming to terms with queerness, but also teaches how grief brings people together.

Aligarh

A movie that strips itself off of all the subtle metaphors and gives us a raw depiction of what it means to be queer in a religion-driven homophobic Indian society. This is not just the story of professor Siras but everyone who had to face discrimination because of their identity.

Blue is the Warmest Colour

A coming-of-age story about love, acceptance, betrayal and accepting your identity.

Carol

An adaptation of the romantic novel The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith, the story revolves around the relationship between Carol, a recently divorced mother and Therese, an aspiring photographer.

Boys Don’t Cry

Based on the murder of Nebraskan Trans-man Brendon Teena, this is one of the first movies that initiated the conversation around gender and transphobia in mainstream cinema.

Moonlight

This critically acclaimed coming-of-age drama revolves around coming to terms with queerness in African-American cultures. The movie won three Oscars including Best Picture in 2017.

Margarita with A Straw

One of the first Indian movies to depict queerness and disability explicitly. The story revolves around Leila Kapoor, a teenage girl with cerebral palsy and her encounter with bisexuality, new york, family and life.

Kapoor and Sons

A Bollywood anomaly that depicts a queer experience as a practical reality, instead of sensationalising or de-sensitising sexual identities.

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

This French masterpiece gives us the beauty of the female gaze. Set in the 1770s the story moves beyond the love of an artist and her muse by portraying love as an art.

ALSO READ-Ayushmann unveils pride flag to bring awareness

Categories
Bollywood Community Lite Blogs

Ayushmann unveils pride flag to bring awareness

Pride Month is observed in June to celebrate and raise awareness about the LGBTQ+ community…reports Asian Lite News.

‘Queer’ is getting more visibility in cinema in the modern era. Bollywood actor Ayushmann Khurrana, who played a gay man on-screen in “Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhaan”, wants to draw focus to the all-new Pride flag that has been unveiled aiming to make the movement more gender inclusive.

“I read about the intent with which the new design of the Pride flag has been unveiled and I wanted to bring attention to this important conversation. The new design by Intersex Equality Rights, UK, incorporates intersex people into the movement,” Ayushmann said.

He added: “I try and bring focus towards inclusivity as much as possible with my films and social media, and I do feel that people need to be aware of the intersex movement. As actors, we are fortunate that we can raise awareness to important issues and I’m trying to do my bit by speaking about Pride month.”

Pride Month is observed in June to celebrate and raise awareness about the LGBTQ+ community.

On the occasion, the symbolic rainbow flag has been redesigned to become more inclusive. The new flag incorporates intersex people into the LGBTQ+ movement, and was led by Valentino Vecchietti.

ALSO READ-Violence against LGBTI people increased during Covid: EU

READ MORE-Biden recognises LGBTQ Pride Month

Categories
Community Lite Blogs USA

Colourful Pride events in US cities

Those protests are now commemorated in the city’s annual Pride Week celebration, one of New York’s most beloved festivals and with time, it has evolved way beyond its party-hard reputation of previous decades…writes Siddhi Jain.

Queer groups have gained much more acceptance in society since they started to raise their voice against discrimination. June is marked as the LGBTQ Pride Month, usually celebrated with street festivals, events and parties. Majority of the Pride events in the USA take place in June and July to commemorate the 1969 Stonewall Uprising which mostly happen on the same weekends. So, whether you’re a member of the LGBTQ community or an ally, here’s all you need to know about how Pride events are celebrated in five key US cities to experience the colorful affair to the fullest.

San Francisco, California
Long considered as one of the most LGBT-friendly cities in the U.S., San Francisco is nicknamed ‘the gay capital of the world’ and is home to one of the largest and most prominent LGBT communities in the country. There are rainbow-clad streets, gay-friendly districts, and some of the most prominent LGBT festivals and celebrations take place here. And if there’s any gay pride event in the U.S. you surely need to attend, it’s the San Francisco Pride. It takes place in June’s latter half and draws over a million people.

While there will be no big Pride parade and celebration event in downtown San Francisco this year, you can still expect a mix of in-person gatherings and online events as people around the Bay Area celebrate Pride. San Francisco’s Pride celebration embodies the freedom of expression, human rights and love; all things that the California city is known for embracing.

New York City, New York
Every June, the streets of New York are transformed into a blitz of rainbow flags, bared skin, and joyous dancing. While at first glance it might look like just a typical New York City Street party, NYC Pride’s roots are steeped deeper in history. The modern gay rights movement began here in 1969, when riots followed a police raid at the Stonewall Inn, an LGBTQ bar. Those protests are now commemorated in the city’s annual Pride Week celebration, one of New York’s most beloved festivals and with time, it has evolved way beyond its party-hard reputation of previous decades. The late June event includes a rally and parade, with more than 350 contingents marching through Manhattan.

This year, The NYC Pride March will take place virtually on June 27 with Grand Marshals Wilson Cruz from Star Trek: Discovery and activist Ceyenne Doroshow leading the event that includes live performances and street side activities. The Rally on June 25 will host a number of speakers in an online forum. There’s also a human rights conference and a Black Queer town hall.

Denver, Colorado
Famed for its mountains, craft-beer, legal marijuana, and hunky bearded men, Denver is also a magnet for LGBTQ+ people all over the ‘Wild West’. While the gorgeous Rocky Mountains are right on the doorstep, you can also find a diverse selection of gay bars, clubs, and bathhouses alongside plenty of art, culture and growing culinary scene.

Denver, Colorado’s PrideFest celebration, which takes place in mid-June is the most family-friendly gay pride event in the US. It has been growing in recent years, drawing more than 350,000 people. The festivities include parties, concerts, a parade, a 5-kilometer walk/run and activities like face painting for kids. Denver is also a dog-loving city, and the ‘Dogs in Drag parade’ is one of the most popular event of PrideFest. To keep the community safe and healthy during the Covid-19, the Denver Pride Parade is going virtual again for the 2021 Coors Light Virtual Denver Pride Parade.

Charleston, South Carolina
It is a charming city full of colourful architecture, oak-shaded plazas, and history aplenty plus tranquil beaches, making it a winning choice for Pride festivities. Charleston Pride Fest is a party like no other. It is one of the later pride events in the USA, taking place each year in September. It is the perfect excuse for an end of summer escape with great weather and a charming welcome. Charleston Pride Festival is held over 7 days with a series of rainbow studded events culminating in a final weekend pride festival and parade.

ALSO READ-Blenders Pride Fashion tour

READ MORE-Priyanka joins pride month celebration